Interpreting Clifford Geertz

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiv

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2. Introduction: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Clifford Geertz

   1. Introduction: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Clifford Geertz

      • Jeffrey C. Alexander, Philip Smith

      Pages 1-6

3. Geertz, Text, and Structure

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 7-7

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   2. Semiotics and Thick Description (Barthes and Geertz)

      • Peter Brooks

      Pages 9-16

   3. The Balinese Cockfight Decoded: Reflections on Geertz and Structuralism

      • Philip Smith

      Pages 17-32

   4. On Not Doing Systems

      • Joseph Errington

      Pages 33-41

4. Geertz, Interpretation, and Meaning

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 43-43

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   2. Geertzian Irony

      • Georgia Warnke

      Pages 45-54

   3. Clifford Geertz and the Strong Program: The Human Sciences and Cultural Sociology

      • Jeffrey C. Alexander

      Pages 55-64

   4. Maximal Interpretation in Clifford Geertz and the Strong Program in Cultural Sociology: Toward a New Epistemology

      • Isaac Ariail Reed

      Pages 65-76

   5. Thick Description as a Cosmopolitan Practice: A Pragmatic Reading

      • Paul Lichterman

      Pages 77-91

   6. “Malarial and Diffident”: The Vision of Clifford Geertz

      • Robin Wagner-Pacifici

      Pages 93-102

5. Geertz and the Disciplines

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 103-103

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   2. Thick Description, Thin History: Did Historians Always Understand Clifford Geertz?

      • Stuart Clark

      Pages 105-119

   3. Scientific Cultures

      • Peter Galison

      Pages 121-129

   4. Geertz’S Legacy Beyond the Modes of Cultural Analysis of His Time: Speculative Notes and Queries in Remembrance

      • George E. Marcus

      Pages 131-143

   5. “To Locate in the Tenor of Their Setting the Sources of Their Spell”: Clifford Geertz and the “Strong” Program in Cultural Sociology

      • Mats Trondman

      Pages 145-166

   6. Ritual, Power, and Style: The Implications of Negara For the Sociology of Power

      • Bernhard Giesen

      Pages 167-177

6. Geertz, Life, and Work

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 179-179

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   2. Clifford Geertz as a Cultural System

      • David E. Apter

      Pages 181-196

Theorist Clifford Geertz's influence extends far beyond Anthropology. This volume reflects the breadth of his influence, looking at Geertz as a theorist rather than as an anthropologist. To date there has been no impartial, comprehensive, and authoritative work published on this critical figure.  

• anthropology
• culture
• ritual
• semiotics
• social science
• work

"Interpreting Clifford Geertz is a rich, many-sided, and illuminating collection of essays. This volume views Geertz's work from different countries and disciplines and explores its ambiguities and inconsistencies, while also emphasizing that much remains to be learned from it." - Peter Burke, Emmanuel College, the University of Cambridge

"The oeuvre of Clifford Geertz is like a rare gem, demanding examination of its endless facets to appreciate its profundity and radiating influence. Congratulations to the editors for doing just that - bringing together the best and most diverse set of minds to assess this monumental figure in twentieth-century intellectual life. The result is an exceptional book, doing full justice to Geertz and furthering his labors." - Neil J. Smelser, University Professor of Sociology Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley

"This is the definitive statement on Geertz.I cannot imagine a more consistently interesting and insightful collection of reflections about Geertz's corpus, and its position in the meaning-centered social sciences. It will be required reading among cultural sociologists for many years to come." - Ronald N. Jacobs, University at Albany, author of The Space of Opinion

JEFFREY C. ALEXANDER Professor of Sociology at Yale University, USA.
 
PHILIP SMITH Associate Professor of Sociology at Yale University, USA.
 
MATTHEW NORTON PhD Candidate at Yale University, USA. 

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